Friday, March 13, 2009
In a move to stem a growing projected deficit and push reforms to continue downsizing state government, Gov. Bobby Jindal today proposed nearly $2 billion in budget cuts and announced a new government streamlining commission.
Jindal outlined a $26.71 billion fiscal 2010 budget, which includes cutting 1,421 full-time state jobs. Some $666 million in federal stimulus money will be used to replace general fund dollars to ease health care and education cuts. But the proposed higher education budget is $2.63 billion, or $219 million lower than the current fiscal year.
To further “increase flexibility and accountability in budgeting,” the governor said the commission, to be named this year, would assess programs and services for further cuts, privatizing or outsourcing. The move comes on the heels of the governor announcing $2.5 million in savings recently identified in eliminating duplicate programs, and consolidating and outsourcing services.
“This overhaul of state government functions is extremely important, especially in these times of national economic turbulence, to ensure that state dollars are being spent as efficiently and effectively as possible,” Jindal says. “Many state agencies were created 30 years ago and served a purpose that may or may not continue to be relevant today.”
The governor proposes a measure to increase reductions in statutory deductions from 5% to 10%. He also wants to remove the two-year limit that these reductions can be made to “create more flexibility on a yearly basis to reduce spending in areas other than higher education and health care.” Jindal plans to overhaul civil service to base it more on performance than tenure. To view Jindal's budget overview, click here.—Anna Thibodeaux